Number portability: whose side is IMDA on?

Whole load of bullsh!t ¢rap from IMDA director: just read for
yourself and see that the director is just folding her arms and
saying: "IMDA would let mobile service providers offer
this service option commercially, in response to market
demand.": she is basically in cahoots w money faced telcos and
cannot see the prejudice of the one way street offered by the
telcos (+/- their biased, one sided surveys)...

I do hope that the same silly IMDA director will reply to the
latest forum letter by Ong See Fong... might not make any
difference though considering that these sock puppet civil
servants might be looking forward toward
a cushy, overpaid directors post some day in our listed telcos I
guess...

Low demand for post-paid
to pre-paid number porting
PUBLISHED. OCT 7, 2016, 4:04 PM SGT
The Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) requires mobile
service providers to offer post-paid to post-paid number porting
and pre-paid to pre-paid number porting between service providers
("Allow customers to keep mobile number when converting to pre-paid
plan" by Mr Lim Tong Wah; Forum Online, Sept 21).

This requirement has been in place since 1997 and 2008
respectively. It allows consumers to switch service providers with
greater ease, as well as facilitate competition.

IMDA notes that the current demand for post-paid to pre-paid number
porting (and vice versa) is low.

Hence, if IMDA requires that mobile service providers implement
post-paid to pre-paid number porting when the demand is low, the
cost of implementation may be passed on to consumers, leading to
higher charges.

Thus, IMDA would let mobile service providers offer this service
option commercially, in response to market demand.

Number porting: Is it low
demand if option is unavailable?
PUBLISHED NOV 22, 2016, 5:50 PM SGT

Besides the concerns raised by Dr Gil Simon Schneider ("2G network
shutdown will be costly for users of basic phones"; Nov 14), there
is another practice by telcos which is not favourable to the weaker
segment of society.

This is the portability of mobile phone numbers from post-paid to
pre-paid plans.

Currently, telcos allow number portability only when there is an
"upgrade" of services, such as from pre-paid to post-paid, but not
for a "downgrade".

Ms Ann Chan of the then Media Development Authority has said that
telcos are not required to implement post-paid to pre-paid porting,
as the demand is low and the cost of implementation may be passed
on to consumers, leading to higher charges ("Low demand for
post-paid to pre-paid number porting"; Forum Online, Oct 7).

However, I wonder if demand really is low, given that
consumers are not offered that option at all.

I understand that some administrative costs will be incurred, but
most consumers would not mind paying a small fee for such
portability.

With uncertain economic conditions and ageing populations,
subscribers have to prioritise their spending, including phone
use.

The infrastructure to port numbers is already there.
Consumers should be offered the option to port numbers from
post-paid to pre-paid.

Even if MDA wants to protect telcos profit margin/ bottom line and
does not want people who trade in hp 'golden' numbers to exploit
cheaper pre-paid card number maintenance options (in order to hog
multiple hp numbers for a low maintainence charge), MDA should
permit every Singaporean to transfer at least one phone number from
postpaid to prepaid if the person has been using the postpaid
number for at least 2yrs (full contract) and does not own any other
prepaid hp line (I.e. for retirees/ those who do not need the
expensive postpaid packages but still want to be contactable to old
friends @home/abroad). No more than one such conversion per year
per person may be allowed. In any case, current laws do not allow
individuals to register for anything more than 3 prepaid hp
numbers.

MDA should focus on helping poor people to keep in contact with
their relatives/ friends and not focus on helping telcos profit @
citizen's expense.

Hi guys I am working on my dissertation for which I need responses for a survey. It is just 2 questions. It would be a great help if you could help me out. Thank you guys in advance. Link: https://goo.gl/forms/uxCIra5acXydviNA3